Hanover Mayor Belit Onay wins runoff with 61.5%, secures second term

Multiple runoff elections on Sunday brought new political dynamics to city halls across Germany. In Hanover, Belit Onay remains mayor, while Oldenburg and Worms have elected new city leaders.

Hanover: Onay Secures Second Term

Hanover's Mayor Belit Onay (Greens) has been confirmed in office for another eight years. The 45-year-old received 61.5 percent of the vote in the runoff, according to the preliminary results from the state capital. His challenger, Axel von der Ohe (SPD), garnered 38.5 percent.

Onay has led the administration of the Lower Saxony state capital since 2019, when he became the first Green politician elected to lead Hanover. The former state parliament member had achieved 45.6 percent in the first round of voting two weeks ago, falling short of the necessary absolute majority.

Born in Goslar as the son of Turkish immigrants, Onay is married with two children and studied law in Hanover. He served in the Lower Saxony state parliament from 2013 until his election as mayor in 2019, when he defeated independent candidate Eckhard Scholz, who was backed by the CDU.

Challenger von der Ohe had received less than half the votes of incumbent Onay in the first round—and still placed second with 21.5 percent. The 49-year-old SPD politician, who serves as First City Councillor and general deputy to the mayor, unsuccessfully challenged his former boss for the top administrative post.

Lüneburg: Incumbent Holds On

In Lüneburg, Green Mayor Claudia Kalisch narrowly won the runoff with 52.9 percent against Heiko Meyer of the independent voters' group Die Unabhängigen, who received 47.1 percent, according to preliminary results on the city's election website.

Unlike her first election in 2021, Kalisch ran this time as an independent candidate. She stated she wanted to demonstrate that she has always led her office in a non-partisan and non-ideological manner. However, she added that she remains "a Green at heart and soul." Kalisch had already led in the first round with 36.1 percent, ahead of Meyer's 28.2 percent.

Oldenburg: Independent Candidate Wins

Independent candidate Jascha Rohr won the mayoral runoff in Oldenburg. Supported by the Greens and CDU, Rohr secured 51.55 percent of the vote according to the city's preliminary results after full counting. His opponent, SPD state parliament member Ulf Prange, received 48.45 percent.

Rohr will succeed Jürgen Krogmann (SPD), who had served as mayor since 2014. In the first round, Prange had led with 33.2 percent, ahead of Rohr's 30.5 percent.

Worms: New Leadership Elected

Stephanie Lohr (CDU) will become the new mayor of Worms. In the runoff, 53.0 percent of voters chose the former city councillor. Timo Horst (SPD) received 47.0 percent of the vote. Voter turnout stood at 38.5 percent.

The runoff became necessary after none of the four original candidates in the Rhenish-Hessian city received more than half the votes in the first round. Lohr had garnered 44.1 percent, while city development councillor Horst received 40.5 percent.

Sources: dpa/nw